How can African farmers respond to the changing climate?
“You cannot rely on the rain to do farming... The seasons have become unpredictable.â€
“You cannot rely on the rain to do farming. Either it’s recurring drought or if rainfall comes, it floods. The seasons have become unpredictable.â€
Last week on Africa Daily we heard about the drought in East Africa and the flooding in South Africa – both bringing misery to millions. Basic food supply becomes difficult.
So today Mpho Lakaje speaks to Abdi Hashi, a farmer and entrepreneur in Somaliland who has set himself a task: to help the breakaway state – which currently imports 80% of its food – to become more self-sufficient. Six years ago he bought up a parcel of arid and unused land that some had deemed unfarmable. Now he has eight greenhouses and eight acres of thriving farmland – and trains other small farmers to become more productive and resilient, and less reliant on the rain.
And with the drought worsening, he tells us how his farm has become a stopping point for nomads from as far afield as Somalia and Ethiopia who are looking for water for their cattle.
Presenter: Mpho Lakaje (@mpholakaje)
Guest: Abdi Hashi (@HorngardensB)
Podcast
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Africa Daily
One question to wake up to every weekday morning. One story from Africa, for Africa